


Stories from our Past

by AgentSilverchase



Category: Zootopia (2016)
Genre: Creation Myth, Disease, Drabble Collection, Folklore, Ghosts, Heritage Minutes, History, Mythology - Freeform, Self-Sacrifice, Thematic Thursday, Urban Legends, t3event
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-06-22
Updated: 2018-06-22
Packaged: 2019-05-26 19:53:42
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 505
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15008204
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AgentSilverchase/pseuds/AgentSilverchase
Summary: Let's look back at our past. Our culture, our triumphs, our origins. The stories we tell to inspire one other. This is our heritage, and we're stronger together because of it. (Thematic Thursday 51: Folklore)(Collection of four drabbles.)





	1. The Builder

A young beaver slips into bed.

"Papi, can you tell me how the world was built?"

"Back in my youth, when mammals still roamed the wilds, we feared one another.

"Our disharmony cracked the sky open and the blue water up there fell. We'd wash away and drown. The Builder saw what happened to his creation, but lacked the strength to stop it alone. He rallied all mammals to put aside their differences. Then he organized the effort to repair the damage. He saved us all!"

"Then what did he do?"

"Him? Nothing. We built the rest of the world." ᛤ


	2. Renton Buckley, Epizoologist

Grace Coast Hospital, 1862

"Dr. Buckley, we keep getting sylvatic patients. Practically in waves!"

This unsettled the muntjac. "And every time I check, a new species ill."

He walked down the hall, gazing over at the sick mammals coming in.

A group of prairie dogs, all fallen ill simultaneously.

A polecat, riddled with fleas.

A goat, a camel, and a hare, three neighbors who shared a well.

"Wait." Buckley stopped in his tracks. "Those three must have drunk the same contaminated water. Prairie dogs live close together. It could spread from one to the other. Especially through... fleas. That's it!"

_ Renton Buckley’s discoveries during the sylvatic epizootic saved thousands. It began the largest public health movement ever, pushing for more paw washing, better fur hygiene, and improved water sanitation. His work eventually led to the complete eradication of the sylvatic plague from the continent. _ ᛤ


	3. The Sleet Spirit

Friend of a friend heard it from the victim's sister.

Decades ago, in the riots, a young lynx was arguing with her boyfriend. She was scared.

He had to choose: flee with her or stay to brawl in the streets.

He chose to fight. The mob beat him up, but he managed to survive.

She didn't.

But she was willing to wait forever for her revenge.

Victim's sister said the lynx's spirit snuck up and took him away when he wasn't looking.

So don't stand too long by the Sleet bus stop. Or else the Sleet Spirit'll get you, too.

_ Or at least that’s how the story goes. Generations of Tundratown residents would learn to fear the Sleet Spirit.  _ ᛤ


	4. Valentino's Final Letter

The imperial decree. I heard it.

They're taking land from families that didn't send a soldier for the war.

But rabbits were never allowed to join in the first place.

When I learned the Ibex Guards would be taking their land by force, my mind was made.

I must stop them.

I raced out to the countryside, where the path forked to the multiple rabbit villages.

I stood in their way, and shouted, "Halt! You will love your countrymammals like you love your brothers. Or dare spill blood on sacred ground."

They'll soon return, but I may not.

Yours, Valentino

_ Valentino likely never returned. No one remembers his appearance, or even what species he was — except that he wasn’t a rabbit. But his courage has not been forgotten, and every year, the rabbit community celebrates Saint Valentine’s Day.  _ ᛤ

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Fun fact: the non-italics text in each story is exactly 100 words long!
> 
> These four drabbles are inspired by the format of the Canadian Heritage Minutes. It's a series of sixty-second long films about major moments, characters, and stories from Canadian history. They sometimes appear in the middle of commercial breaks on TV.


End file.
